U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) News

Fighting Food Poisoning: Sweeping Poultry Changes Proposed

The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Friday proposed sweeping changes in the way chicken and turkey meat is processed that are intended to reduce illnesses from food contamination but could require meat companies to make extensive changes to their operations. …

US Asks Farmers: Can You Plant 2 Crops Instead of 1?

There is only so much farmland in the United States, so when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last spring prompted worries that people would go hungry as wheat remained stuck in blockaded ports, there was little U.S. farmers could do to …

Iowa Egg, Turkey Farms to Lose 5M Birds to Bird Flu

Bird flu has infected two more farms in Iowa, forcing the killing of 5.3 million hens and 88,000 turkeys, officials said. The new cases mean that across the nation, farmers have had to kill about 22 million birds, mostly egg-laying …

New Strain of Bird Flu Related to 2015 Virus

Farms that raise turkeys and chickens for meat and eggs are on high alert and taking steps to increase biosecurity, fearing a repeat of a widespread bird flu outbreak in 2015 that killed 50 million birds across 15 states and …

Extreme Drought in U.S. Prompts Emergency Crop Insurance Procedures

Responding to extreme drought conditions in parts of the country, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is authorizing emergency procedures to help agricultural producers. USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) is working with crop insurance companies to streamline and accelerate the …

USDA Names Louisiana Hurricane Natural Disaster Areas; Ag Producers Eligible for Aid

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated several parishes disaster areas as a result of damage and losses caused by Hurricane Laura’s strong winds in late August, according to Louisiana Commissioner of Agriculture and Forestry Mike Strain. A primary …

U.S. to Research Transmission of COVID-19 in Beef Supply Chain

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is funding a $1 million research project to identify how the virus that causes COVID-19 might be transmitted in the nation’s beef supply chain, from cattle on the farm to the packages of meat inside …

U.S. Completes Overhaul of Biotech Farm Product Regulations

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced on Thursday a rule that will simplify or waive agency reviews of certain biotech farm products, including plants and seeds that have been genetically modified or engineered. As a result, some products could be …

Government Relief Bypasses Farmers Who Lost Stored Crops in Floods

The Black Hawk military helicopter flew over Iowa, giving a senior U.S. agriculture official and U.S. senator an eyeful of the flood damage below, where yellow corn from ruptured metal silos spilled out into the muddy water. And there’s nothing …

3 Louisiana Parishes Designated USDA Natural Disaster Areas

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated three Louisiana parishes as contiguous disaster areas as the result of excessive rain and flooding that occurred April 1 to June 30, 2018, according to Agriculture and Forestry Commissioner Mike Strain, D.V.M. …